Violent Echoing
by Darkpurplelighter
Summary: Despite the Ministry acknowledging the Dark Lord's return and Fudge stepping down, Percy Weasley is still estranged from his family. Slowly descending to the dark side, can anyone help him before it's too late?
1. One Year Ago

XXXXXX

One Year Ago.

The sunset was beautiful that evening. Graceful blue changed its hue again and again, slip-sliding slowly towards darkness. It blurred over Percy Weasley's smiling face just as the wind blew lightly as he continued making his way up towards the Burrow.

As Percy opened the front door to the house his heart pounded in confident excitement. He couldn't wait to tell everyone the good news, especially since they all expected the worse when he told them Fudge wanted to see him.

His parents were both in the living room as he came in and looked up when they heard the door open. Ron and Ginny were both sitting there too, apparently just as curious to see what had happened in his meeting.

"Percy, dear." Molly smiled as she got up to greet her third son. "How was the meeting? What did Fudge want to see you about?"

Percy's chest swelled up with pride.

"Well, it's good news. He offered me a new position. He wants me to be the Junior Assistant to the Minister. I'd be the youngest Junior Assistant in history."

His beaming smile continued but no one reacted, not even Molly who always reacted with jubilation when being told of his accomplishments. She slowly turned her head to look at Arthur, who was looking at his third son, stone faced.

"Well…what do you think?" Percy asked, a little confused now as to why his mother or father hadn't congratulated him.

"Percy…that's wonderful." Molly finally said as she pulled her son into an embrace.

"Percy." Arthur said as he got to his feet.

Molly looked at her husbands face and quickly said;

"Come with me, Percy. I'll fix you supper. This is very good news, I'm proud of you."

"Molly wait." Arthur said as he walked over to them. "We need to discuss this."

Percy's brows furrowed with confusion as the smile disappeared from his face.

"We can discuss it later." Molly began but Arthur shook his head.

"We need to discuss it now."

"Discuss what?" Percy asked.

"Look, Percy." Arthur began. "I don't know if it would be such a good idea for you to take the job."

"And why not?" Percy responded incredulously. He thought for sure that his father would be happy for him, he was making it on his own. Any parent would be proud.

"Son, you know with what happened just recently with Crouch did nothing to help your reputation at the Ministry. I really doubt that Fudge would hire you as his assistant without some other reason."

Swallowing a little, Percy breathed deeply through his nose as his ego was bruised a little when his father brought up his last job.

"So what reason would Fudge have?" He finally asked.

"I think he wants to use you to get information about Dumbledore. You've seen the papers, he's starting a smear campaign against him and he knows how close this family is to him. Fudge is determined to get to anyone who supports Dumbledore. What better way than to have you in his office?"

Percy bit his bottom lip, not sure of how to respond.

"Percy, I'm sorry." Arthur said, reaching out to give his son's shoulder a quick squeeze. "But you have to face the facts."

"Face the facts?" His son responded while stepping away from his touch. "How do you know? You really think I couldn't have gotten this job based on all of my hard work? The Ministry knows how ambitious I am to get ahead."

"Percy, listen," Arthur began but his son cut him off.

"So Dad, you really think that I don't deserve it, that I could never get this job without some ulterior motive?"

"I didn't say that, it's just that your reputation precedes you, and Fudge-"

"Dad, if any reputation precedes me it would be yours," Percy snarled, as months, even years of frustration began to build up him.

"What are you talking about?"

Percy had held his tongue over the years, out of respect for his parents. But at that moment, he could do it no longer and continued to release his venom on the man standing in front of him.

"Everyone thinks you're so strange, with your muggle obsession, your stupid collections and your stupid job. That's why we've never had any money, and had to live in this shack all our lives, because your obsession keeps you back. You have no idea what I've had to go through ever since I've started working at the Ministry. When people first meet me they expect me to be just like you, and I have to fight against _your_ reputation every damn day."

Molly gasped in horror as Ron and Ginny both gave sharp intakes after hearing what their older brother just said to their father. Arthur raised his chin as his eyes narrowed, Percy could tell that his words had just wounded him.

"Excuse me?" Arthur finally said, his voice was low, trying to mask his anger with a calm tone.

"If anyone's deluded it's you!" Percy continued. "If Fudge has got it in for Dumbledore, it's because the man's running around spreading Harry Potter's lies. It's stupid of Dumbledore to back him up with no proof."

"How dare you!" Arthur spat, coming as close to a yell as he had so far. "Harry's word that the Dark Lord is back is good enough for Dumbledore, than it's good enough for me."

"Then you are absolutely pathetic. You're throwing everything away on the word of a mentally unbalanced fourteen-year-old who just wants attention!"

Ron tensed up after what Percy had just said about his best friend and Ginny quickly put her hand on his wrist, trying to help him remain calm.

"And what about following a man who refuses to even consider the Dark Lord is back, who won't even investigate the matter?" Arthur was now yelling too.

"Fudge is the Minister of Magic!" Percy snapped, "I would take his word over that crackpot Dumbledore any day!"

"You're being an idiot!" Arthur snapped. "Dumbledore is no crackpot!"

"No, it's you who's being an idiot! You're heading for big trouble if you continue to support Dumbledore's lies! And if you're going to be a traitor to the Ministry, then I'm going to make sure everyone knows that I am not a part of this family anymore!"

Once again, silence filled the room as nobody spoke. Arthur was now breathing heavily out of his nose as he glared at his son. Finally, through his anger he yelled;

"Get out! It's that's the way you feel than just get out! And don't bother coming back!"

"Don't worry, I won't."

He gave his father the best sneer he could muster before marching up the stairs, heading to his room to pack. When he was on the second floor he saw Fred and George standing in the hallway, both giving him a dirty look as he passed by, apparently hearing every word he had said.

Percy ignored them as he walked into his room and pulled out his old battered suitcase and began throwing clothes in. He was so intent on getting out of here as fast as possible he didn't realize his mother was in the doorway until she sniffed as tears trailed down her cheeks.

He tried not to feel guilty or ashamed when he saw her, tried not to feel anything at all as he gripped his bags and moved forward to walk out the door.

"Percy, you and your father are just angry." She began. "Just stay here tonight and tomorrow when you're both calm you can talk this out."

"Mum please. This is for the best."

"But dear-"

"So, Mum, do you think he's right?" He asked. "About what he said about Fudge offering me this job?"

She didn't answer, but the look in her eyes told him everything, and abruptly a great overwhelming sadness was fighting to take the place of his anger. His mother, his only real supporter over the years, didn't even believe in him now.

"Goodbye, Mum," Percy said, trying not to care about the heartbroken look on her face, but failing miserably.

He walked back down the stairs as fast as he could, not even bothering to look back at his Dad as he opened the front door and walked out of the house he grew up in, and into the real world.


	2. Last Chance

XXXXXX

Staring up at the ceiling of his flat, Percy laid awake as the sun began to shine through his curtains. It was a restless night as he got maybe three hours of sleep; the only thing he could think about was the headlines in all the papers.

_'Potter and Dumbledore vindicated. Fudge to resign.'_

Percy thought for sure that this time his career was over. Last year he had been investigated by the Ministry because he hadn't realized that Crouch Sr. had been put under the Imperius Curse and then killed. But despite the fear that he and his family had that he would be fired, he was instead promoted to work directly for the Minister of Magic himself.

It was the happiest Percy could ever remember being, even happier than being named Head Boy. All of his dreams seemed to becoming true. All of his hard work was paying off. He had earned this job, he deserved it.

After all, Fudge had once said that he relied on Crouch to handle difficult problems such as international relations. With Crouch gone, it made sense to rely on Percy in his place, at least that's what he thought. But his father saw things differently.

His father was sure that Fudge had promoted him solely to use him as a spy against the Weasley family. Percy had came home expecting praise for his promotion, expecting his parents to be proud, instead his father basically told him that he was being played for a fool.

That night, something in him snapped. He vented all his pent up anger. His family never supported him, they had always mocked him and his goals and he was sick of it. That night he told them that his loyalty was going to be to the Ministry, not to his family.

He then cut off all contact with all the members of his family. He returned his mother's Christmas sweater, sent a letter to Ron telling him to sever ties with Harry and didn't even visit his father in the hospital. He knew that his actions must have hurt them, but it didn't matter. He was right.

Percy was sure of it that day when he accompanied Fudge to Hogwarts and dragged Harry and Cho Chang into Dumbledore's office when Umbridge found a secret room the kids were training in.

"Dumbledore's Army" it was called. That was all the proof he needed that what Fudge was saying all along. That Dumbledore was conspiring against him. He thought for sure that his parents would apologize sooner or later, and then things would eventually go back to the way they were.

But that's not how it worked out.

Apparently, Harry had led a group of kids, his brother included to the Department of Mysteries and fought against Death Eaters. And by the time Aurors arrived, they had seen, Fudge included, the Dark Lord with their own eyes.

After that, Fudge had no choice but to resign and Percy had no doubt that the new Minster, Rufus Scrimgeour would be getting rid of everyone in the previous administration and replacing them with new staff.

That was the reason Percy couldn't sleep through the night. He had a meeting with him at eight o'clock and was fully expecting to be canned.

He took a deep breath and looked over at the clock sitting on the nightstand. It read seven-fifteen. Percy shook his head as he lifted himself up and threw his legs over the bed and quietly said to himself;

"Well…let's just get this over with."

XXXXXX

"Can I help you?"

Percy swallowed nervously as he continued to stare at the Minister's secretary. His new secretary. That certainly wasn't a good sign. He cleared his throat and finally responded;

"Yes, I have a meeting with Mr. Scrimgeour. My name is Percy Weasley."

"Oh yes, come with me. He's been expecting you."

The secretary got up and led him to the door of the Minister's office but before she could knock, the door opened and Lucius Malfoy stepped out.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Alice." Lucius said and then looked towards Percy. "Mr. Weasley." He greeted with a nod.

Percy returned the nod.

"Hello, Mr. Malfoy."

Percy watched Lucius walke away as Mrs. Alice then knocked on the door, getting the Ministers attention.

"Mr. Scrimgeour, Percy Weasley is here to see you."

"Oh yes, Mr. Weasley." Scrimgeour greeted as he walked over and shook his hand. "Have a seat. Would you like something to drink?"

"No thank you."

As soon as Mrs. Alice closed the door, Rufus walked over back to his desk and sat down in front of Percy has the young man tried not to fidget nervously.

"I've been going through your record. A prefect at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Head Boy, graduated with thirteen O.W.L.S. Very impressive."

"Thank you, I tried my best." Percy smiled.

"So, Mr. Weasley, I'll get right to the point. I've been told that you working under Fudge as his Junior Assistant."

"Yes sir, I did."

"And from what I've heard, you did an exceptional job. One of the few that was in his administration."

"Well...I always tried to work my hardest."

"Let me ask you, Mr. Weasley. How do you think Fudge handled the whole situation of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named return?"

Percy examined his fingernails for a moment before deciding to answer honestly.

"Well sir, there really wasn't much evidence in the beginning. All you had was Harry Potter saying that he was back, and Dumbledore taking him at his word. An administration can't just take the word of someone, no matter who it is. After all, we were taught in school that extraordinary claims require extraordinary proof."

Rufus nodded.

"I understand that."

Right then, Percy couldn't take it any longer and decided to ask the question that was burning in his brain.

"So...am I being let go?"

"Let go? What gave you the idea that you were being let go?"

Percy stared at the Minister, a rare grin plastered across his face.

"You mean you're keeping me on as your Junior Assistant?"

"Of course." Rufus almost laughed. "Like I said, you did an exceptional job when you worked for Fudge."

"Thank you, sir." Percy said as he stood up and shook the Minister's hand. It felt like a million pounds had just been lifted off his shoulders. "I promise I won't let you down."

"That's good. Well, first order of business is Lucius Malfoy. You saw him leave my office didn't you?"

"Yes sir, I did."

"Well, He's invited me and many of my staff to his Manor for a dinner party this evening. I would like it if you would accompany me there."

"With all due respect Mr. Scrimgeour, I don't know if that's such a good idea. I've heard things about Mr. Malfoy, bad things."

"As have I." Rufus responded. "But, I can't know for sure until I've seen it myself. So how about it? Can you make it?"

"Certainly sir."

"That's my boy."

When he left the office, Percy took a deep breath in relief. He still had his job. But this was his last chance, it had to be with what happened with Crouch Sr. and then backing Fudge in his position with the Dark Lord.

He couldn't screw up again. And he wouldn't.


	3. Breaking Up

XXXXXX

Standing in front of the mirror while placing the best attire that he owned, Percy stopped for a moment in the middle of fixing his tie just to look at himself. He couldn't believe his luck, two screw ups and he still had a job with the Ministry. Two strikes against him, and he was determined there wouldn't be a third. It didn't matter what he had to do, work even harder, stay up later, work on weekends, it didn't matter.

He wouldn't fail again.

Just when Percy finished getting his tie on, his eyebrows raised in surprise when he heard a knock on his door. He walked over to it but just before he grabbed the doorknob he remembered when his mother tried to visit him and how awful that had been.

"Who is it?" He asked.

"It's Penelope." The voice answered.

A smile came over Percy's face as he unlocked the door and opened to see his girlfriend's beautiful smile.

"I wasn't expecting you. Come on in."

Penelope walked into the flat as Percy quickly closed the door and turned back around to welcome her.

"Is this a bad time?" She asked as she examined him. "You look like you're ready to head out."

"Well…kind of. The Minister has asked me to accompany him to a dinner party tonight."

"You're working for the new Minister of Magic?"

"Yes, Rufus Scrimgeour. I think he'll be an improvement over the last Minister we had."

"I can't imagine how he could be any worse."

Percy smiled a little and then smoothed out his jacket.

"So, what did you want to see me about?"

Penelope then shifted a little, feeling uncomfortable.

"Percy…today your father came to see me."

The mention of his father made Percy's smile quickly fade away.

"And well…would you like to have dinner with your parents tonight?"

"No."

And with that, Percy turned away and headed for the bathroom but Penelope went after him.

"Why not, Percy? Don't you think this fight has gone on long enough?"

"If he wanted to see him tonight he could have asked me himself."

"He didn't ask you because he knew you wouldn't have talked to him."

Percy didn't respond as he pulled out a bottle of cologne and begun spraying it on himself. He continued to feel Penelope's eyes on him and he sighed with frustration.

"I told you, I have plans tonight."

"Can't you get out of it?"

"No. It's important."

"More important than making up with your family?"

"Yes." Percy snapped as he spun around to face her. "I'm well rid of them. They never did support me, they never respected me. Mum was the only one who was ever proud of anything I accomplished and yet she still…"

He trailed off as he shook his head before looking back up at his girlfriend.

"Look, Penelope. The harder I work now, the more I'll be rewarded for it later. One day I'll be the Minister of Magic and you and I will be married. We'll be able to do anything we want."

Right after he finished that sentence, Penelope went from looking disappointed to taken aback.

"Married?"

They had never talked about such a serious commitment before.

"Yes. I want to marry you someday. And I'll make sure you have the finest things in life. Everything will be perfect, we'll have a nice house, nice clothes, and we'll travel the world together. And then maybe…we'll have kids."

Penelope bit her lip as she looked at the ground, and just by the look on her face Percy began thinking back to a year ago when he told his parents about becoming the Junior Assistant to the Minister. They had the same look on their faces as Penelope had now.

"Penelope?" He questioned. "Doesn't that sound perfect?"

Taking a deep breath, Penelope finally spoke.

"Of course it does, but Percy…I don't think I could marry you. Not anymore."

After she said that Percy felt like he had just been kicked in the stomach. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find the words. Upon seeing the look on her boyfriends face, Penelope continued.

"Percy…you've changed. It's like you've got your whole life planned out and everything you do is designed to get you someplace. Leaving school, get a job at the Ministry, get married, become the Minister of Magic, have kids…"

"What's wrong with that?" Percy asked.

"You've put your career in front of everything else, including your family. If this is the way you are with your family, how you be with our family? I would just be the wife of the Minster of Magic."

"You wouldn't just be the wife of the Minister of Magic, you'd be _my_ wife."

"And what about our children? Would you play catch with them? Or read them a bedtime story? Or would you tell them you'd do it some other time because you were too busy with work?"

Percy continued to stare at her and his heart rate was beginning to pick up. He felt horrified…scared. He didn't like were this was heading.

"Penelope-"

"Percy." She interrupted. "I think it'd be best if we didn't date anymore. If we were just friends."

Percy swallowed the lump that had now formed in his throat.

"Penelope…why." He walked towards her but she backed up to avoid his touch. "Why are you doing this?"

Tears began forming in Penelope's eyes that she quickly brushed away.

"Percy, I thought that maybe I could be with you. But after your father told me how you've been with your family over the past year..."

She meant to continue but the look in Percy's eyes made her stop.

"So that's it, huh? Because of them?"

"Do you even know how bad you've hurt your parents? Do you how mad your brothers and sister are at you because of the way you've been acting?"

"I tried to be everything they wanted me to be, Penelope!" Percy then shouted. "You know how they paid me back? With nothing but neglect and ridicule!"

Penelope backed away as Percy began turning red before he finally came at her and roughly took her arm.

"Percy! Let go!"

He wouldn't listen as she screamed for him to let go as he led her to the door.

"Get out! Telling me we're over is the best thing you could have said!"

After throwing Penelope out, Percy walked back to his bathroom and slammed his hands down on the sink as he trembled with anger.

This was all his father's fault. Because he was too much of a coward to talk to him, he went to his girlfriend instead and told her all about his estrangement to his family. Made her think that all he cared about was getting ahead.

His father had ruined his relationship.

The next thing he knew, Percy had put his fist right through the mirror shattering it into tiny pieces.


	4. Malfoy Manor

XXXXXX

Standing outside the door of the Malfoy Manor along with Scrimgeour, Percy had managed to compose himself long before he arrived and pushed away his thoughts of Penelope and his father. He was here with the Minister, here to do a job and he wasn't going to let them distract him from his work.

The door finally opened and one of Lucius Malfoy's many servants answered the door.

"Come in, gentleman. You are expected."

"Thank you." Scrimgeour responded before motioning for Percy to follow him in.

The inside of the Malfoy Manor was _gigantic._ The floor was made of marble and looked like a large chessboard, black squares here and there. There were many portraits and paintings on the walls, and vases sitting on the floor which he assumed were very expensive. Percy looked up to see a beautiful chandelier atop his head. The ceiling looked miles away from the floor and the staircase was long. It looked like it was never-ending.

The guests were standing around, talking amongst themselves while drinking what he guessed was wine. Percy recognized some of them from the Ministry, others he didn't know but were around his age.

He then took a second glance and realized that they were his old Slytherin classmates. None he remembered by name, nor did he care to remember. After all, all the ever did was torment him about his poor family…his house, his robes…

Percy quickly shook his head as he commanded himself to stop thinking about it.

"Percy." Scrimgeour spoke. "I'll be right over there with those gentleman."

He pointed to a small group and Percy nodded.

"Yes sir."

When the Minister walked away Percy stood around awkwardly, feeling out of place. He finally just let his feet move him forward until he down the hall until he was in another part of the Manor, were the other guests weren't.

A light in one of the rooms caught his attention as he made his way towards the half open door. Pushing it open, Percy looked around and saw that it was most likely an office. A large, probably expensive desk was in the middle, and pictures were all over the walls.

Percy took a curious step forward as something on the desk caught his eye.

When he got closer he saw that it was a dagger, a long silver dagger with a dragon's head on the end of it, a small red diamond on the handle.

He cocked his head as he lightly touched it and wondered just how much this must have cost.

Lucius Malfoy was a wizard who had always intrigued Percy long before he began working in the Ministry. Growing up, his father had never said anything good about Malfoy, but yet not even a month had passed working for Barty Crouch did he realized that Lucius was greatly respected by his mentor. Both rumor and success never seemed to be too far away from Malfoy.

"Ambitious."

Percy looked up and stepped away from the desk in horror once he heard a voice. Standing by the entrance of the office was none other than Lucius Malfoy.

"Sorry sir," he apologized while nervously smoothing out his jacket. "A light was on and just…wandered in, sorry."

"Did you just apologize for being ambitious?" Lucius smiled. "Mr. Weasley, you don't have to do that."

Lucius then walked into the room to see what Percy had been looking at.

"Ah, that dagger once belonged to my grandfather. He then gave it to my father who gave it to me. Perhaps one day I shall give it to my son. If he shapes up, that is."

"It's a very nice dagger, sir."

"Thank you."

Quickly remembering why he was here, Percy blurted out;

"Mr. Scrimgeour is talking with the other guests. I know he thanks you for the invitation."

"Yes, Rufus Scrimgeour." Lucius nodded. "I look forward to meeting him, but to be honest Mr. Weasley, it was you I was hoping to see here tonight."

Percy had to keep in jaw from dropping after hearing that.

"Me…why me?" He stammered.

"I have many contacts, Mr. Weasley. I've had my eye on you for a while now. I made a note to watch your career after Crouch spoke so highly of you once."

Percy couldn't hold back the small smile that came to his face when Lucius mentioned praise from Barty Crouch. Fudge might pretend to have been a friend of Mr. Crouch's, but Lucius Malfoy, from what Percy had seen, really had been.

"So tell me, Mr. Weasley. What does an up and coming wizard like yourself plan on doing in the next few years?"

Percy cleared his throat.

"Well…I was hoping to make a run at becoming the Minister of Magic someday. It's becoming clear to me that the government is not going where I would like it to be."

Lucius chuckled lightly.

"I understand completely Percy-may I call you Percy?" Percy nodded and he continued. "I can see why Crouch appreciated you so much. You obviously have a good eye for what's going on in the world of politics. So would you agree that what is needed right now is a new government?"

"Absolutely. I think that Scrimgeour is only going to continue Fudge's bad policies."

Wait...what was he saying? He hadn't been around Scrimgeour long enough to make that observation but Lucius was nodding in agreement and that was fueling his ego.

"Yes, now before we continue I think I should give you an explanation."

"An explanation, sir?"

"Yes. I'm sure you've read in the papers all about the incident in the Department of Mysteries a few weeks back."

Percy looked down at the floor. He had read that Lucius had been arrested, but he never went further than an outer holding cell in Azkaban before being cleared of all charges.

"Well, sir. I wasn't going to bring it up."

"I know. That's why I am."

Lucius then walked to the other side of the desk as Percy watched him carefully.

"Did you know that there were hints of The Dark Lord's return before that night?"

"No. Certainly Fudge wasn't aware of it."

"Well, he'd been told, but he brushed it off. Fudge had a fine case of denial, and it just about cost the wizarding world everything. Luckily, there was a small group of us who were following the rumors closely. We went to the Department that night on the word of a source who told us that Harry Potter was going to be meeting with an associate of the Dark Lord's.

Percy gapped at the older man after hearing that. He knew that Potter boy was nothing but trouble.

"Sure enough, Harry Potter and a few of his friends, including two of your younger siblings, I believe, arrived at the Department of Mysteries, although how they got there from Hogwarts I can't imagine. The situation was under control until they showed up. In all the confusion, I'm afraid the disguises I and my friends had taken caused us to be mistaken for followers of The Dark Lord."

Percy shook his head. Just one more example of the current incompetence in the Department of Law Enforcement. When they finally do arrest someone, it's the wrong person.

Lucius then looked over at the grandfather clock in the corner and saw just how long they had been talking.

"I almost forgot about my other guests." Lucius laughed. "Come now, let me introduce you to everyone."


	5. Getting Acquainted

XXXXXX

As Percy followed Mr. Malfoy out of his office and down the hall, both heading back to the the ballroom to be with the other guests, the younger man continued looking around at his surroundings, still at awe at the size of the Manor.

"You have a magnificent house, sir."

"Please, Percy." Lucius laughed. "Call me Lucius. And thank you."

"I've always wondered how someone could have so much. How were you able to afford this?"

Percy then shook his head as he thought back to his humble beginnings, always having to do less. Being able to achieve something like this was an impossible dream to Percy. He then quickly remembered his question and caught himself, knowing that it was a little inappropriate. It was really none of his business.

"My apologizes, Mr. Malfoy." He quickly followed up. "It's none of my business how you got your money-"

"Now, now, Percy." Lucius interrupted. "Modesty doesn't become men like us. I was able to achieve success because I was smart, driven, resposible, and hard working. I think you have the same qualities."

"I'm more of a work in progress."

"At least your making progress."

The two of them then walked into the ballroom and Lucius led him over to what looked like a shorter version of himself. Percy than recognized him as Mr. Malfoy's son.

"Draco, say hello to Percy Weasley. I'm sure the two of you met while you were in Hogwarts."

Draco's expression darkened when he looked at Percy.

"What is a _Weasley_ doing here?"

Percy narrowed his eyes but Lucius spoke up before he could.

"Be polite, Draco. Percy is a guest here tonight and holds a very respectable position within the Ministry."

"I'm surprised that he actually showed up here."

"Why is that?" Percy asked.

Draco smirked.

"Because our families have always hated each other."

Percy nodded in agreement.

"Well, yes."

"Well maybe it is high time to break that tradition." Lucius spoke. "We've all made some rather…foolish decisions over the years."

Lucius then put his hand on Percy's shoulder to lead him over to another group of people. As they turned away, Percy overheard Draco muttered something about being 'glad that not all those freckle-faced idiots are blood-traitors.'

Biting his tongue, Percy continued walking with Lucius as he tried to best to ignore what Draco had just said. Over the years, he had managed to control his temper better than the rest of his siblings could.

"Marcus." Lucius said, getting the attention of another young man. "Marcus Flint, this is Percy Weasley."

Percy then briefly shook hands with the boy he recognized as one of his many tormentors from his days in Hogwarts.

"Yes, we've met." Marcus smirked.

"Yes we have."

Someone across the room then waved his arm towards Lucius, motioning for him to walk over to their group and looked back at the two young men.

"Excuse me, gentlemen."

Marcus watched Lucius walk away before turning back to Percy.

"You don't look happy to see me."

"You use to make fun of me all the time when we were in school."

Waving his hand, Marcus laughed.

"It was nothing personal, Weasley. I was just a kid when I did those things."

"So that makes it alright?"

"No, it doesn't make it alright."

Marcus then stook out his hand and Percy looked down at it in surprise.

"I'm sorry for messing with you all those times. Please accept my apology."

Percy nodded before shaking Marcus' hand.

"Thank you for saying something."

After taking a sip of his drink, Marcus spoke again.

"So what are you here for?"

"Ministry business. I was asked to accompany Rufus Scrimgeour here tonight. I'm his Junior Assistant."

The other boy nodded again but showed no sign of being impressed by Percy's job.

"What do you think of all this?" Marcus then asked, referring to their surroundings.

"To be honest, it's all a little overwhelming."

"That's the first thing I thought when I started working for Mr. Malfoy."

"You work for Mr. Malfoy? What do you do?"

"I'm sort of a manager. You know that that Malfoy family owns all sorts of things. Factories, stores, industries…they even have stocks of magic corporations. He's always looking for young blood to bring in. You should think about working for him. You'll make more money working for Mr. Malfoy in a month, than you will in a year at the Ministry."

Percy then scratched the back of his neck as he thought about what Marcus said. He already made twice as much money as his father and had his own flat in London. He already had more than he ever thought possible.

"Well…I'm sort of happy where I am."

"Dreamy, isn't he?"

Percy then spun around when he heard the voice from behind him and saw two very attractive girls standing there. They both had blonde hair and black dresses on and looked like they could be sisters.

"Percy, this is my girlfriend Amelia Blackwood." Marcus introduced, referring to the slightly taller girl.

"Hello." Percy greeted.

"And this is her younger sister, Audrey."

Audrey then held out her hand for Percy to shake which he did.

"Nice to meet you, Audrey."

"Likewise."

Audrey then signaled for a waiter carrying glasses of wine to come over to them.

"You seem a little tense, Percy. I have just the thing for that."

She then took a glass off the waiter's tray and handed it to him. Percy raised an eyebrow as he looked down at the red liquid.

"Take a sip, Percy dear; I'm sure you'll find it quite lovely."

Percy instinctively raised the glass lips and after another brief stall, finally took a sip. His tongue was in heaven, and he managed to swallow the liquid before gasping;

"What on earth is this?"

Marcus laughed.

"That's real wine, my friend."

Before either of them could say another word, the voice of Lucius got their and everyone else in the room's attention.

"Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen. Will you all follow me to the dining room, dinner is now ready."

All the guests did what was asked and followed Lucius in an orderly fashion out of the ballroom and to the dining room. The center of the room had a large table, twenty five chairs on each side and several house elves were putting food and utensils in front of each chair.

"Please, have a seat." Lucius said.

"Why don't you sit next to me?" Audrey smiled as she walked next to Percy.

"Sure."

They both sat down next to each other and when everyone was seated, Lucius stood at the chair that sat in front of the table and raised his glass.

"To the new administration, to old friends…to new beginnings."

Everyone else then raised their glass as well in the toast.


	6. Reflections

XXXXXX

Two weeks had gone by since the dinner party at the Malfoy Manor as Percy rolled over in his bed and smiled when he saw Audrey laying next to him, still asleep. He then closed his eyes again and took a deep breath, really starting to reflect on himself and what had happened to him over the last few weeks.

He was a mover, within the ear of the Minster of Magic himself, the youngest Assistant to the Minister in history, a pureblood former Head Boy. He had outshined all his brothers, even outshining his father already, and he had only just begun. He was on his way to the top, and now, even Lucius Malfoy, the most wealthiest man in the wizard community liked him.

His father was wrong about Lucius. He wasn't a bad man…his father was probably just jealous of all the success that Lucius had in his life. It didn't surprise Percy in the slightest.

Getting to his feet, Percy walked over to the window of his flat and pulled the curtain aside and watched the muggles walking around the street below. He saw a young woman carrying a large shopping bag as three small children walked with her. Percy couldn't hear it, but the woman spoke to them before the children's faces lit up, and they took off running. Percy's eyes followed them as they ran into the waiting arms of a young man in a tailored suit.

"Hey you."

Percy turned his attention from the sight when he heard the voice and saw that Audrey was awake.

"Good morning." He smiled as he walked over and kissed her.

"That was quite a night."

"I'm glad you had a good time."

Audrey then kissed him again.

"Happy birthday."

"Thank you."

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her closer to him but before they could do anymore, someone began knocking on the door.

"Percy! Open up!"

Percy's brows furrowed as he got back up and opened the door to see Marcus and Amelia standing there.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"How come you didn't tell us that today was your birthday?" Marcus asked.

Percy looked back at Audrey who gave him an innocent look before turning his attention back to Marcus.

"Well…I didn't think it was that big of a deal."

"It's your twentieth birthday, of course it's a big deal. Mr. Malfoy got us a reservation at The Promenade."

"That's a four star restaurant." Percy gapped.

"That's right, we'll be dining in style tonight." Marcus grinned. "Then we'll all go to the Leaky Cauldron for some drinks."

He couldn't help but smile. It was nice to know that he wasn't going to forgotten on his birthday.

"Alright. Sound's good to me."

XXXXXX

Later that day, Molly Weasley walked through the hallway of the Burrow heading to Percy's old bedroom. She walked in and opened up the window so that the air could venture in.

Arthur had told her to leave this for another day, but the room badly needed cleaned and there was no point in delaying this any longer. Just get it done and over with.

Pulling out a cloth, she began wiping the dust off all the furniture, the headboard of the bed and the nightstand. She used her wand to levitate the rug out in the window and shaken, and used a charmed broom to sweep the floor. This was easier than she thought it would be Molly tried to tell herself...but she didn't truly believe it.

Especially when she opened up the closet.

Inside there were several boxes filled with old cast-offs. Shirts, jeans, shoes, things that were kept over the years for sentimental reasons. As she bent down to open one, a tear that had been threatening to fall all day finally does.

She opens a box and sees things like comic books and pictures inside. Picking one up, she saw that it was of Percy…maybe three years old as Charlie held him in his arms. Bill was standing right next to him and they were all smiling and waving in the picture. As she continued to stare at it, Molly began to cry into her hands as if she would never stop.

Percy could be a child or a man. A prefect at Hogwarts or working at the Ministry. Be at home or at his flat somewhere in London. He could speak to her or ignore her. She could miss him all day, every day and he could not even think about her at all. But it would never change one fact that was made this day twenty years ago.

He would always be her baby.

Just then, Ron was coming from his room and was about to walk past the open door when he heard the sound of his mother crying from inside. It filled him with anger when he heard her. He knew that she was probably going to be more upset today than usual even though they were all better off without that git.

He crept by as quietly as he could before storming his way down the stairs until he reached the kitchen and saw Ginny sitting by herself at the table, eating her breakfast. She looked at him with an emotionless expression before speaking.

"Mum's crying?"

It wasn't even a question. It was Percy's birthday and Ginny knew he wasn't going to be visiting them today. Naturally, it was going to make their mother upset. On top of that, last night she had overheard her parents talking about Percy's bedroom, mum wanted to clean it and dad was trying to talk her out of it.

"Yeah." Ron growled as he opened the refrigerator. "I don't know why though."

"You know what today is, don't you?"

"Monday, isn't it?"

"Ron."

Ron shook his head as a look of anger appeared back on his face.

"I can't believe mum still cries over that prat."

"What do you expect her to do? Just forget about him?"

"Why not? Hasn't he just forgotten about us?"

"You don't know that."

"Like hell I don't. As far as I'm concerned he's no brother of mine."

"Ron."

Both Ron and Ginny turned their head as their father walked into the room.

"That's enough, Ron."

They could see from the look on his face that their father was upset too, but Ron was far too angry to let up.

"Come on, Dad," Ron said. "He isn't not worth being this upset over. You don't see him crying over us, do you?"

"Enough." Arthur repeated. "I know that when we're angry and hurt, we can only see the worst in each other. But you know deep down how much you care about him. The both of you."

Ginny looked down at her plate of food but Ron just shook his head.

"He doesn't care about us."

"Don't say that." Arthur suddenly said. "Of course he cares about us, we're his family. Now I don't want to hear another word against him, understand?"

From the tone in his voice, Ron finally knew to drop the subject and the rest of breakfast went by as normal as it could get.


	7. Under the Influence

XXXXXX

"I hate him."

It was a low growl from Fred as he sat in the back room inside Weasley's Wizard Wheezes across the table from George as they worked on the production on some of their products. Sales exceeded what they expected and they knew if it continued they were going to have to hire help.

"Who? Dean?" George asked, referring to their little sister's boyfriend.

"No, though he's a git too." Fred then flung the self inking quill he was working on away from him and it bounced off the wall. "Percy."

"Oh."

George sighed as he continued working on the puking pastilles. He didn't know what to say because he knew how Fred felt and he knew what today was. They were both over at their parent's house today and saw the somber mood their father was in and the teary eyes of their mother.

It made them both angry at their older brother who seemingly didn't care what his continued estrangement from the family was doing to their parents.

"You know what?" George then said as he sat the ingredients down and got to his feet. "We've been working for hours now. Why don't we take a break?"

"Alright." Fred responded as he too got up. "What do you have in mind?"

"Let's just go get a couple of drinks. Have a good time. It'll take our minds off everything."

"Fine. Let's go."

Meanwhile at the Leaky Cauldron, Percy had arrived there with Marcus, Audrey, and Amelia. They got a four seat table near the back and ordered the most expensive bottle of liquor they had, since Mr. Malfoy was paying for everything.

"I don't think my stomach has any more room." Audrey said.

"I hear you." Percy echoed. The group had just come from The Promenade and he had the best meal of his life. It was funny, throughout his life his parents had always tried to make each one of their kids birthday a special occasion. Now that he was no longer speaking to them he had thought he was going to spend his birthday alone this year.

But it wasn't the case. So far he was having the time of his life. His family wasn't even on his mind at the moment.

"Oh, I almost forget." Marcus then said.

He pulled something out of his jacket pocket and Percy saw that it was a wrapped gift.

"You all got me something?" He asked.

"It's from Mr. Malfoy." Marcus responded as he sat it down on the table.

"Don't be like that, Marcus." Amelia laughed. "It's from all of us."

Just then, Fred and George both walked through the doors and did a brief scan of the place. It wasn't particularly crowded, since the reappearance of the Dark Lord had most people too scared to go out this late at night.

"The usual for us, Adam." Fred told the bartender who nodded and proceeded to fill two glasses with whisky.

After being handed their drinks, the twins sat down beside each other at the bar and continued looking around at everyone else.

And that's when they spotted him.

Percy was sitting at a table, surrounded by three other people they didn't recognize. He began laughing at something being said as a waiter came by carrying a tray of drinks. George then noticed the wrapped gift sitting on the table.

It filled them both with rage. Percy was celebrating his birthday like his family didn't even exist.

Fred deliberately dropped his glass and it shattered when it hit the floor, making everyone in the place turn their attention towards them. Percy was one of them, and he froze when he saw them. They both waited as Percy continued to watch them, an unreadable expression on his face.

Finally, he broke the stare and turned back to Marcus.

"Do you know those guys, Percy?" He asked.

Percy shook his head.

"Never seen them before in my life."

Right after hearing that, Fred and George didn't even have to say a word nor exchange a glace as they walked right out the door, heading for someplace else. Anywhere would be far better than here.

XXXXXX

He felt a little woozy by the time he reached the door to his flat. Percy had probably had a little too much to drink, but he couldn't help it. He was having a good time…he hadn't felt this good in a while.

Percy clutched the gift he had been given as he unlocked his door. It was a book, 'The Art of War' by Sun Tuz. When he walked in he sat it down on the table before looking up in surprise to see Lucius Malfoy sitting on the couch.

"Mr...Mr. Malfoy." He managed to gasp.

"Percy." He smiled as he got to his feet. "My apologizes for just letting myself in. I just wanted to speak with you, see how your special night went."

"Everything was fine, Mr. Malfoy. Thank you."

"Your quite welcome. Now please, sit."

Lucius helped guide Percy over to the couch while he took a seat in the recliner.

"Actually Mr. Malfoy, I should be getting some sleep. I have to be at work tomorrow-"

"No you don't. I asked the Minister to give you the day off. They tell me you haven't taken a day off since you started working at the Ministry."

Percy shrugged as he fought to keep his eyes open.

"Well...what can I say? I like what I do."

"I admire your passion for your work, Percy. Really I do. Your parents must be proud."

Percy stared at the older man across from him for a few seconds before shaking his head.

"No. They're not."

Lucius raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"When I told my father I had gotten the job he accused me of spying on him. He basically said I didn't deserve the job, or couldn't have gotten it on my own."

"That must have hurt when he said that."

"It did. So I told him what I really thought of him, his job, his house…then I stormed out. I've never been back."

Percy then went on and on, almost like a drunken rant. He told Lucius of how he avoided his father at work, slammed the door in his mother's face, sent back his sweater with the words 'Return to Sender' on it, and didn't even visit his father in the hospital after he'd been attacked.

He couldn't help it, but venting all of this actually felt good. And Lucius never once took his eyes off of him, he just listened to every word he said. Finally after he finished, Lucius reached over and put his hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Percy. Any parent would be proud to have you as their son. I know I would be…which is the real reason I'm here tonight."

Percy looked at Lucius with a confusion etched on his face.

"I want you to work for me. Come join my staff, we need someone as dedicated to their job as you."

"I'd be honored sir, absolutely honored." Percy said truthfully.

Lucius looked very pleased with Percy's answer. "I'm glad to hear that. I know you've already brought honor to your family."

Finally, Percy's eyelids became too heavy to keep open and the last thing he saw was the couch pillow before he drifted off into blackness.

Smiling a little when Percy passed out and fell asleep on the couch, Lucius got up and prepared to walk out of the apartment when a noise from the window got his attention. As he got closer to it he saw that it was an owl pecking at the glass.

Lucius opened it up and saw that a letter was attached to its leg. He pulled it off and upon opening it up, he saw that it was some kind of wedding invitation. The names Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour were on the center, as well as a date. This Friday.

Smirking, the white haired man sealed the invitation back up and pulled out a quill from his jacket pocket. Looking back at Percy to make sure he was still asleep, Lucius wrote the words 'Return to Sender' on the envelope before tying it back on the owl's leg and sending him off.


	8. Dangerous Alliance

XXXXXX

The following morning, the sun was bright and hot as Bill sat in the kitchen of his home, drinking coffee and reading the Daily Prophet as his fiancée Fleur walked in. The two smiled when they saw each other.

"Good morning." He greeted.

"What's for breakfast?" She asked.

He shrugged.

"I don't know."

"How about pancakes?"

"Okay."

She then handed him a list.

"I need eggs, milk, flour, and pancake mix. We're going to need to run to market soon."

Bill looked down at the list.

"I'll have cereal."

She gave him a look as he smiled at her before the sound of their owl at the window got their attention. Fleur opened it up and took the letter off its leg.

"Were you expecting something?" Bill asked.

She looked it over and bit her bottom lip as she saw what it was.

"What is it?"

Fleur handed it over to Bill. He looked down at it and saw it was an invitation to his wedding with the words 'Return to Sender' on it. He then remembered how Percy sent back their mother's sweater on Christmas.

"Who sent it back?" She asked.

Bill swallowed before speaking.

"Percy. I wrote him and Charlie this weekend to let them know we're getting married this Friday and asked them to be there. Percy sent it back."

His limbs suddenly felt heavy as he reached up and rubbed the side of his face. He swallowed again as he tapped his finger on the table as he could even feel his heart rate begin to quicken. Bill couldn't even describe what he was feeling right now.

"He isn't going to be at our wedding." He finally said.

It wasn't going to be a big wedding. They both decided that with what was going on with the Dark Lord just to keep it small, their families would be there, a few friends. But nonetheless, it was going to be the biggest day of his life. And Percy wasn't going to be there.

"Are you okay?" She asked.

But he didn't respond.

Fleur continued to stare at him but didn't say another word as Bill slowly got up from his chair and walked out of the room.

XXXXXX

A week later, Percy walked through the gates and up to the Malfoy Manor. He was prepared to start his new career today…whatever that might be. He hadn't resigned from his job at the Ministry just yet, but he probably would soon enough after Mr. Malfoy told him just what his job was going to be.

He was nervous, but he had made his choice. He couldn't turn back now.

When he was let into the house, Percy was told by a house elf that Lucius would meet him in his office. As soon as he walked into the room, the door behind him swung back and closed on its own, and then locked.

"Hey!" He shouted as he grabbed the doorknob and tried to open it but couldn't. "Hello!" He yelled while banging on the door.

Just then, the chair at the desk turned around and a man in a black robe and mask was sitting there.

Yelling in surprise, Percy quickly pulled out his wand but he was disarmed before he could so much as utter a spell. Falling backwards, he crawled backwards until he his back was against the wall.

"Relax, Percy."

The younger man then looked on in shock as the Death Eater stood up, removed his mask and Percy was now looking at the face on Lucius Malfoy himself.

"You are a Death Eater!" He gasped.

"Yes."

"What do you want?"

"You know what I want. Join us…serve the Dark Lord."

"Why me?"

"You want power, you want respect. Things you've never had before."

"What about your son?" Percy asked. "I would have thought for sure that he'd want to follow in your footsteps."

"I'm afraid that Draco is not ready for such an important job. You however, are more than ready. You're young, you're strong…you're angry. Perfect assets for this kind of work."

"I don't want to kill people!" It was supposed to sound emphatic and final but instead sounded tired and empty.

"You'll end up doing that whatever side you're on. This is war, Percy. People kill and people die, that's just the way it goes. And only one side wins."

Percy shook his head in disagreement as he got back to his feet.

"No one truly wins in war, some just lose less than others."

Lucius laughed.

"This is reality, Percy. Or maybe you just need to be reminded of how painful reality is."

Lucius then pulled a newspaper out of the pocket of his robe and tossed it into Percy's hands. When he caught it, Percy turned it over and looked at the headline.

_'Bill Weasley weds Fleur Delacour.'_

Percy's jaw dropped when he saw the headline. He then started reading the rest of the story.

_The wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour took place on __August 1, 1997__ at Bill's family home of the Burrow in __Devon__, __England__. The bride and groom's younger sisters, Gabrielle Delacour and Ginny Weasley served as bridesmaids, and Bill's younger brother Charlie served as the best man._

"Did your brother not even invite you?" Lucius asked. "You see Percy? There is no where for you to go but here."

"And what is there for me if I join you?" The words left the young man's mouth before he could quite believe he would ever say them.

Lucius laughed, sensing victory.

"Power, money, respect. The things you want most, show your family what you are truly capable of. It is well known that you have long wished to be thought of as more than 'just another worthless Weasley'."

Crumbling up the paper, Percy tossed it away, not wanting to read anymore of it. He then looked up into Lucius' smiling face and nodded.

"Okay." He said quietly.

"Okay what?"

"I'll join you."


	9. Percy's Dark Deeds

XXXXXX

Percy had remained at the Malfoy Manor throughout the rest of the day and now going into the early hours of the night. He was sitting in the living room, on one of the couches still going over the decision he had made in his head.

For some reason, this whole time Lucius had been trying to bring him over to the Dark Lord's side. And he had agreed to join.

It shocked him as he thought it, it shocked him as he said, and it still shocked him even after all this time had gone by. He had agreed to join the most evil wizard ever to live…become a Death Eater.

He had a deep, empty feeling in the pit of his stomach as he continued to think about it, wondering if it was far too late to back out now. But even if he did, he had no where else to go. His family no longer wanted him.

Percy then picked up the newspaper article that detailed Bill's wedding and looked it over again. Did his family really hate him this much? That they wouldn't even invite him to a wedding? Birthdays and Christmases would come and go, but a wedding was a once in a lifetime event, he would have attended no matter how estranged from the family he was…if only he had gotten an invitation.

As he took a deep breath while putting the paper back down, Percy continued thinking about his family, the problems he had with them over the years. He wondered if they really thought this whole thing had gone on simply because they were right and he was wrong about the Dark Lord's return.

It wasn't. It was much more than that. Through most of his life he had felt like an outsider in his own family, especially as he got older. Now he began to think if he ever truly fit in with them.

They probably wanted him to come crawling back, begging for forgiveness and just forget about all the years of their neglect and ridicule. That's what they wanted.

They wouldn't get it.

"Weasley. You actually showed."

Percy jumped a little when he heard the voice and turned around to see Marcus Flint standing behind him, a smirk on his face.

"Marcus?"

He nodded.

"I don't know why I'm surprised. After spending time with you, I knew that you're not like the others."

"The others?"

"The Gryffindors. Your brothers. Their friends. The noble ones, the ones who went around claiming that all they wanted was world peace and happiness for all muggles and purebloods. Blah, blah blah."

"Yeah." Percy responded, not really knowing what to say at the moment.

"I hope you're ready, Percy. This is your initiation."

"What exactly are we doing?"

"We're going to attack Hogsmeade. Destroy everything and anyone there."

"We're going to kill people?"

"Probably"

"I don't know if I can do this."

"You better be able to do it." Marcus said in a stern voice. "You're in now, and once you're in, you're in forever. Or you will die."

Percy turned away from Marcus and muttered something under his breath just when several men started walking into the room, led by Lucius Malfoy.

"Gentleman, we have a new recruit joining us tonight." Lucius began. "Percy Weasley."

Percy quickly got to his feet to face the other men.

"This is Vincent Crabbe Senior and Walden McNair."

The younger man nodded his head as they looked him over. Just then a forth man entered the room and Percy recognized him immediately.

"And of course, I'm sure you remember Severus Snape."

Once the two locked eyes, Percy didn't know who looked more surprised. Him or his former potions teacher.

"Alright." McNair began. "Now that we're all introduced, let's go."

"Wait a minute." Lucius said as he held up his hand.

He then walked over to a trunk that was sitting next to the fireplace. Opening it up, Lucius took out a black Death Eater robe and a silver mask. Placing the items his arms, Lucius turned back to Percy and held them out for him to take.

"We can't have you going out without this."

Percy stared down at it for a moment before reaching out and taking the mask in his hands. He looked into it, momentarily mesmerized as a sick sort of satisfaction began to overtake him.

His family had hurt him…and he was going to hurt them back.

The group of Death Eaters apparated from the Manor to their destination, destroying a bridge a long the way. Rain was lightly starting to come down when they arrived, the drops beating out a rapid rhythm as they hit the ground. In the distance, the low rumble of thunder could be heard as the sky darkened now, more clouds gathering overhead.

Percy couldn't see much from behind the mask, but he could hear it all perfectly. The sounds of screams, windows being shattered, the roar of flames.

One of the other Death Eaters had yelled something at him, but at this point his mind was in a haze. As people continued running away, running for their lives, Percy took his wand and pointed it at the Three Broomsticks before releasing a spell that started a fire.

The sound of screaming could be heard from inside before people started running out to escape the flames.

Other Death Eaters began firing spells at them as Percy could only watch. He knew that he was suppost to be helping...but he could only watch as people were killed in front of him.

XXXXXX

The following morning, sunrise found Britain red and bleeding.

Hogsmeade was in ruins, the village that had been around for hundreds of years, the only magical settlement in the country was destroyed. Shops had been burned to the ground, rubble and broken glass littered the streets.

Blood was pouring out into the gutters as houses that once stood were now collapsed in on itself, leaving their inhabitants in shallow un-dug graves.

Snape sighed as he walked through the door to 12 Gimmauld Place, headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix. Being a spy for Dumbledore wasn't easy and having to reports the news wasn't going to be much fun.

He walked straight into the kitchen to see Dumbledore sitting at the front of the table, Lupin, Tonks, and Moody sitting on the left. Arthur and Molly were sitting on the right along with Fred, George, and Ginny. Ron and Hermione were sitting towards the back of the table with Harry.

Snape frowned a little when he looked briefly at Molly. She was a kind woman, and she was going to be devastated by what he was going to inform all of them.

"Severus." Dumbledore greeted.

He nodded.

"Headmaster." He began. "As you all know Hogsmeade was attacked last night. From what I understand over a dozen people were left dead."

Harry, Hermione, and Ron all looked at each other after hearing the number.

"Yes. Do you know why Hogsmeade was targeted?"

"Apparently is was to send a message. That they are getting closer."

"Is there anything else, Severus?"

"Yes. I have some rather important news about the Dark Lord's ever growing army. It appears that he has gained a new member...someone who currently works for the Ministry."

After he revealed that, everyone at the table looking at each other, both interigued and scared at the same time.

"Who is it?" Lupin asked.

Snape sighed as he looked at Arthur and Molly's faces before answering.

"It's Percy Weasley."


	10. Tears of Rage

XXXXXX

"Not my baby! Not my son!" Molly cried as tears began to flow from her eyes.

"I'm sorry Molly, but it's true." Snape explained. "I saw him myself. He assisted in the attack."

"Why? Why did he do it?"

"I'm afraid I don't know."

Snape sighed before turning around and heading back out of the room. Molly's crying could be heard throughout headquarters after Snape just informed them all of the news.

Tonks had moved over towards her and wrapped her arm around the other woman's shoulder. Tonks was crying too, not because of what she had learned but because she could feel Molly's grief.

Ginny had a hand over her mouth as tears slowly trickled down her cheeks. The hurt that she felt couldn't even be described. Percy may have been a prat to them all over the past year, but he was still her big brother. He always tried to set a good example for them all, despite how annoying he could be sometimes.

He couldn't be a Death Eater. Impossible. Unthinkable.

Arthur was hunched over the kitchen table, his breathing suddenly becomine irregular. His hands were shaking slightly and he kept shaking his head in clear denial, continuing to repeat the words, 'No…no…no."

Fred had sworn profusely after being told and continued to do so under their breath, his parents or no of the other adults even bothering to tell them off for it while George just in silence, but his eyes told everyone the pain the news had caused him.

Ron's face looked as if it had collapsed, his expression unreadable. He hadn't spoken a word since learning that Percy had become a Death Eater. Finally, he got to his feet and left the kitchen in a hurry. Harry took a quick glance at Hermione, who nodded before going over to comfort Ginny.

Quickly rushing out after his friend, Harry saw that Ron was sitting on the second step of the staircase, his face twisted in fury as he continued to shake his head.

"Ron-"

"He had a family!" Ron yelled as he jumped to his feet, causing Harry to take a step back. "Yeah, he acted like a git, but we still loved him. We would have taken him back in an instant. But he joined up with them!"

Harry remained silent. As good of a friend as he was to Ron, he didn't have a clue of what to say to him.

"Why would anyone choose that, Harry?" Ron asked as he took a deep breath, looking as if tears were about to fall from his eyes at any second. "Why?"

Harry didn't have any answers to give his friend. Percy's betrayal had stabbed a knife into the hearts of Ron and his entire family, and left them feeling, Harry thought, worse than he had ever felt.

He wondered whether he would be able to forgive Percy if he ever turned back to the good side, but had trouble imagining it. He found himself imagining making Percy pay for the misery and heartache that he'd caused his family.

Back in the kitchen, Molly's sobs were finally starting to quiet down and when they did George finally spoke up.

"Mum." He began as he softly wrag in shaking hands together. "Do you think it's our fault, Mum? We picked on him a lot…you were right. We should have let up on him. He was always so serious, he could never take it as well as the rest of us…"

"Bollocks!" Fred yelled out angerily, glaring at his twin. "Percy's just a bloody prat, that's all! It's not our fault he ran off to be a damn Death Eater! How can you even think that a few jokes and pranks over the years could turn someone evil!"

"Percy's not evil!" Ginny snapped at her brother. Everyone then turned their attention to her as she continued weakly. "He's not…he just didn't know what he was getting himself into."

"The hell he didn't," Fred muttered bitterly. "He went along with them to destory Hogsmeade, didn't he? As far as I'm concerned, he's no brother of mine."

Ginny then looked at Fred after hearing the crack in his voice after he said that. She continued watching him as he walking out of the kitchen. Arthur however just shook his head again as even more tears began to fall.

"No, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have argued with him that day…I drove him away."

"Arthur!" Molly yelled as she got up while wiping her eyes. "This is not your fault."

He too got to his feet and grabbed his wife in a tight embrace.

"What are we going to do? Our son is a Death Eater."

"We'll go on…we'll survive."

While this was going on at the Order of the Phoenix headquarters, in a quiet flat in London, Bill was finishing reading the paper while his wife slept peacefully in their bedroom.

He got up to head to the kitchen, holding a cup of tea in his hand when a figure standing in the doorway made him stop in his tracks.

"Percy?"

His younger brother didn't say a word. He simply lifted up the sleeve of his robe, showing what he had on his left arm.

The Dark Mark.

The cup that Bill had in his hand fell to the ground and shattered as he continued looking at the dull and charred tattoo against his brother's pale skin.

"Oh my god. Percy…no."

"Oh yes." Was the only thing Percy said before apparating from the doorway of the flat, back to the Malfoy Manor.

Bill shrunk to his knees, his mouth opened slightly and his breathing had turned into short gaspes. He did not want to believe what he just saw. His little brother Percy had the Dark Mark, he had become a Death Eater.

Fleur had woken up when she heard the sound of heavy crying coming from the doorway and found her husband sitting on the floor. Never before had she seen him cry and sight of him so distraught instantly frightened her.

"Bill, what is it? What is it?"

She wrapped her arms around him but Bill couldn't get himself to speak…he just continued to sob in Fleur's arms as she gently rocked him back and forth.


	11. Hope Through Despair

XXXXXXX

Percy had resigned from the Ministry.

Bill had written a letter to Charlie detailing what had happened with Percy arriving at his flat and showing off his Dark Mark. Hours had gone by since then and he had gotten tired of waiting for a response and went to the Ministry headquarters, hoping that he could possibly catch him there and try to talk some sense into him.

But at the desk they informed him that Percy Weasley had resigned from the Ministry yesterday morning. It was then did Bill fully realize the gravity of the situation, and a cold pain went through his stomach as the though entered his mind. He really had done it. Percy had become a Death Eater.

However, the awful feeling he had was also mixed with a determination he hadn't felt before, or at least not for a long time. The determination to save his little brother, to bring him home before he did something he would regret, something that couldn't be fixed. He just had to find him first.

As soon as he got home, Bill walked into the kitchen to see Fleur by the stove cooking an unnecessary amount of food. She tended to bake whenever she got nervous.

"Well?" She asked when she saw him.

Bill shook his head.

"He wasn't at the Ministry. But I'll find him."

A cracking noise then went off in the den as Charlie appeared, apparating from Romania. Bill ran into the room and as soon as the two brothers locked eyes with each other, Charlie shook his head, a pleading look on his face.

"Please tell me this is some kind of joke that you or the twins came up with."

Bill sighed heavily.

"I wish."

"Percy can't be a Death Eater." Charlie then said. "He wouldn't do that. He's our brother...part of our family."

It was just then did Bill really start to think about the rest of the family and how that would react when they found out about the news. Fleur then walked in to the room and Bill decided to take action.

"Charlie, take Fleur to mum and dad's house and stay there. Tell them what I told you about Percy."

"What about you?"

"I'm going to find him."

"Then I'm going with you." Charlie demanded.

"No." Bill said firmly. "Please…just do what I asked."

Charlie frowned but decided better against arguing, especially an argument that he wasn't going to win.

"Alright. Just…look after yourself okay?"

"Don't worry about me."

After they both left, Bill decided that he should check Percy's apartment next, see if he shows up. If he didn't…Bill honestly didn't know where to go from there.

XXXXXX

"You stupid fool!"

Percy was sitting on the couch inside his flat as Rodolphus Lestrange continued to berate him about going to his older brothers flat and showing off his brand new Dark Mark.

"Now your damn brother is going to tell the rest of your family! You weren't suppost to tell any of them! You've messed everything up!"

"Relax, Rodolphus." Percy finally said. "Bill is going to be here at any time now. We'll take care of him then."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because I know him. It's just the kind of thing he does."

Percy knew that the older brother side of Bill would take over and he would try to find him and talk to him. But it had been hours ago since he apparated to Bill's flat and now he was starting to get a little worried as the sun was beginning to set.

The plan had been for him to go to the Burrow, peacfully at first, seeking forgiveness which would lead to an attack on it, in order to take them out all at once. The Weasley family were considered blood traitors and allies of Dumbledore, so naturally they would be on the Dark Lord's hit list, but something about that plan made him uneasy.

Plus, he wanted them to know. At least one of them to know that he was a Death Eater. That they had driven him to this. That _they_ had made him do this because they looked down on him and mocked him through the years.

And why? Because he wasn't 'funny' enough. Wasn't irrresponsible enough.

He gritted his teeth as he turned up his sleeve and looked down at the mark again. He had been glad for this, for this opportunity to rise to the sort of power he'd always craved. He loved the look of disbelief that Bill's face held when he showed him the mark.

He wasn't exactly sure why he chose to tell Bill. Maybe it was because for the most part, he was always kind to him. Him and Charlie both, but Charlie was all the way in Romania.

It was then did the memories of the days of Bill playing with him as a child, and Charlie trying to teach him to ride a broom come back to Percy. The days of Fred and George following him around everywhere before they got older and became terrors. The days of teaching Ron to play chess or Ginny asking him to read her a bedtime story.

Percy then shook his head, silently commanding himself to stop thinking about his family and turned his attention back to Rodolphus and to why they were here.

They both then looked at each other when they heard the quiet sound of a doorknob being shaken.

"Get ready." Rodolphus hissed.

Percy quickly jumped from the couch and hid from sight as the front door slowly opened and Bill walked into the flat.

Bill looked around the dark apartment as all the lights were off and could barely see a thing.

"Percy?" He called out. "Are you here?"

After getting no answer Bill pulled out his wand and used it as his light as he closed the door behind him. He walked further into the room and continued to look around…

_"Stupify!"_

He had zero time to react as the spell hit him in the chest, launching him off his feet and making him crash into the wall. Rodolphus smirked at his handiwork as he picked up Bill's fallen wand as Percy made all the lights in his apartment go on.

"I knew you'd come." Percy said as he looked down at his older brother.

"Percy." Bill gasped out.

Percy then pulled out his wand and pointed it at him.

"Tonight I lose a brother."


	12. The Final Step

XXXXXXX

Slowly crawling backwards on his hands until he reached the wall of the apartment, Bill looked up at his younger brother as he pointed his wand down at him, a murderous look in his eyes.

"Percy…please." He whispered, not pleading for his own life, but for his brother not to take this last, final step into becoming a Death Eater. "There's no turning back from this bro, and I know this isn't you. Please put your wand down and let me fix this for you."

After saying that, Bill could have sworn that Percy's eyes became just a little softer for just a moment before a strong look of rage reappeared on his face.

"Don't try to act like you care now! None of you ever did!"

"That's not true, Percy."

"Not true? Not true!"

Rodolphus, who was standing behind Percy laughed in amusement though whether at Percy's expense, or at Bill's it was hard to tell.

"Percy we always loved you…we still do…"

"Oh and you all have certainly shown that over the years, haven't you?" Percy raged. "I always tried my best to follow in your and Charlie's footsteps. To be a good example for Ron and the twins."

"And you did." Bill responded, trying to reason with him. "But look at what you're doing now. You've ripped the family apart."

"Why should I care about this damn family? After the way you all treated me, you can go to hell for all I care."

"What did we ever do to you Percy? Yeah you didn't grow up in the richest family, but did you ever miss a meal? Didn't you always have a roof over your head? Didn't mum do everything for you? Did you even think of her when you got that mark?"

Percy's eyes went to the side as he tried not to think of his mother. But then he remembered how his father reacted when he told him about his promotion and that's all it took for him to get angry again.

"Oh yeah? And what about dad? Once I started moving up in the Ministry all I heard from him was that I was making the wrong choices! That the Minister wouldn't of hired me on my own merits! That he just wanted me to spy of him!"

He then laughed humorlessly.

"What a joke. As if he mattered that much to anyone. Well guess what, I don't need it anymore. I have a new job now, an important one."

Bill shook his head.

"Percy..."

"Enough of this." Rodolphus then snapped, his once amused expression gone. "It's time. Kill him now, we more important things to get to."

He swallowed nervously after hearing what the older man had just said, but Percy nodded and slowly backed himself away from his older brother, to let there be some distance between the two when he fired the spell.

As Percy reached the other end of the room and lifted up his hand, pointing his wand in his direction, Bill didn't even blink as he continued looking in the eyes of his younger brother, hoping that there was still some good left in him.

_"Don't do it."_ He silently begged.

Trying to ignore the look on Bill's face, Percy pointed his wand straight at him and tried to get himself to say the two words that would end all of this.

_"Bill!"_

_Sitting in the library by himself in the giant castle that was Hogwarts, Bill looked up from his essay when heard the voice of his eleven year old brother._

_"Charlie and his friends were making fun of me." Percy finished. _

_Bill nearly laughed, and it took nearly everything in him to keep from doing so. Percy was so serious that he'd have a right fit if Bill just ignored him. He'd promised his mother that he'd watch after Percy this year. And he was rather afraid of the howler he'd be getting if he somehow mucked it up._

_"Okay." Bill responded after a moment, his voice laced with amusement. "What do you want me to do about it?"_

_"Punish them! You're Head Boy aren't you?"_

_Looking down at the badge he had pinned to the front of his shirt, Bill nodded._

_"Yes."_

_"So what are you going to do?"_

_"What do you want me to do?"_

_"Detention. For the rest of the year."_

_"Don't you think that's too much, Perce?" Bill asked. "I mean, they were only joking around a bit. They didn't hurt you or anything did they?"_

_"No. But you two promised mum you would be nice to me."_

_"I can't punish Charlie just for messing around with you. I'm Head Boy, not your baby-sitter."_

_Sulking, Percy took a seat and shook his head._

_"Someday, when I'm Head Boy, things we'll be different."_

_Bill smiled after that and quickly gr__abbed his brother into a playful headlock._

_"Hey! Bill, let go!" Percy yelled as Bill messed up his hair._

At that moment, Percy didn't even realize his eyes had been closed until he opened them. Didn't realize that he was biting his bottom lip until he tasted a bit of blood.

And it was that moment did Percy know that he couldn't do it.

"I _can't_!" Percy then yelled out, dropping his arm with a look of frustration on his face. Rodolphus glared at him for a moment before pulling out his own wand.

"Enough of this kids table shit. I'll do it."

But before he could kill his older brother, Percy sent a spell in Rodolphus' direction, nailing him in the chest. A look of rage then appeared on the Death Eaters face.

"You filthy blood traitor!"

Rodolphus sent a spell back at Percy as Bill quickly dove behind a couch, covering his face with his arms as spells were being sent furiously back and forth. Finally, he heard the sound of a sharp gasp for air before the sound of window crashing.

Bill got up when he realized the duel had stopped and saw that the window in the apartment had been broken, Rodolphus was no where to be seen. Then looking past some knocked over furniture, he saw the body of his younger brother laying on the floor.

"Percy!" He yelled.

He ran over to his side and gently turned Percy over in his arms. Now to his horror, he saw two large cuts on Percy's chest and he was now losing a lot of blood.

"Oh god, Percy. What spell were you hit with?"

"I don't know." Percy managed to say through coughs.

Bill search frantically for his wand before realizing that Rodolphus had taken it. He then started to look for Percy's wand but couldn't find it.

"Hold on, I'm gonna get help."

He tried to get up but Percy gripped his wrist tightly.

"No…don't leave. Stay with me."

Swallowing a knot in his throat, Bill looked down at his brother who now sounded like he was eleven years old again. Percy then moved his arm around so he could take a look a the Dark Mark. He then shook his head as tears welled up in his eyes.

"How did I get here? I had everything in order."

"It's okay Percy, you're going to be okay."

Percy's eye sight then began to fade, he could also feel his heart rate slowing down. He looked over at Bill.

"I'm sorry Bill, for everything."

"I'm sorry too. So is everyone else...but we'll work everything out." Bill said desperately. "Just let me get someone."

Bill then quickly got to his feet and ran out of the apartment to get his younger brother help.


	13. A Time to Mourn

XXXXXXX

Arriving back at the Burrow after spending the whole day at the twins joke shop, trying to take their minds off the horrible news they received a few days ago, Ron and Ginny walked through the front door with Harry and Hermione right behind them. But as the entered the living room, they were all surprised to see Remus Lupin sitting on the couch.

"Professor Lupin?" Ginny questioned. "What are you doing here?"

Lupin stood up to face them.

"What I have to tell you isn't going to be easy to hear." Lupin began, sounding more somber than the others have ever heard. "I have news regarding Percy."

Ron and Ginny looked at each other, wide eyed. Now what? Lupin then cleared his throat and continued.

"Your brother was taken to St. Mungos a few hours ago after being hit by a spell by a Death Eater. He's not expected to make it through the night."

A small cry erupted from Ginny as Harry and Hermione came forward to place their hands on her shoulders as Ron continued to look at his former professor as his breathing started to come out in erratic bursts.

"You will all be going to St. Mungos immediately, where the rest of your family is already waiting." Lupin continued. "I'm going to accompany you to make sure you reach the hospital."

Lupin stepped forward and helped Harry and Hermione get Ron and Ginny to move forward and get ready to touch the portkey. They all reached out and felt the familiar pull behind the navel then hit the floor as they arrived at the hospital.

Harry helped Ginny up and held her while Lupin went out to find out where they needed to go. Hermione had managed to get Ron who had a very distant look in his eyes, up into a chair in the waiting area. As the continued to wait, a noise got their attention as suddenly Fred and George arrived by portkey, Tonks was with them as well.

"Where are they?" Fred asked as he stood up, a panicked look on his face.

"We're waiting to find out what room Percy's in." Harry responded.

"What a minute!" Ron suddenly yelled as he jumped up from his seat. "Percy betrayed us! Why should we care what happens to him?"

Before any of them could respond, a voice said;

"He saved my life Ron."

They all looked over to see Bill standing there, looking very drained and run down.

"A Death Eater tried to make him kill me. He couldn't do it and fought him off, getting cursed as he did."

"How is he?" George asked.

"It's not good."

Bill then led the way down the hall to the room Percy was. It was then did they see Charlie waiting outside of a room and the twins quickly ran down to him.

"Is Percy in there?" George breathed as he reached his older brother.

"Yeah. Mum and Dad are in their right now." Charlie answered. "Percy wanted to be alone with them."

"But we need to see him too." Fred argued.

"I know. But Percy only wants to see Mum and Dad right now."

They continued to wait, the seconds going by like hours before he door was slowly pushed open the Mr. Weasley walked out. He looked are at all of his children, a sad smile on his face as a tear slowly rolled down his cheek.

Inside the room, the sound of Mrs. Weasley crying could be heard as Harry and Hermione suddenly felt out of place until Arthur hugged them both. After he pulled away from them he took a deep breath and looked down at the floor.

"He's gone." Arthur said.

The news hit them all like a punch to the gut. Bill swallowed a knot in his throat but had no more tears. Charlie was shaking his head, his eyes welling up.

Fred and George both looked angry, they turned away from everyone else and walked over to sit down on nearby chairs. They cursed under their breaths, and talked intently to each other about what they'd do to the person who'd killed him.

Ginny began crying again and was comforted again by Harry and Hermione.

Ron was silent.

XXXXXX

The Burrow was the quietest Ginny could remember. Their mother had gone upstairs since arriving back from the hospital and hadn't been seen since. Arthur was letting Harry distract him with a game of chess.

Bill was sitting on the sofa in the living room, drinking a hot cup of tea silently to himself. The twins were upstairs with Charlie. Hermione and Fleur sat at the table in the kitchen, talking quietly to each other.

Ginny was trying to keep herself busy, occupying herself with small chores. Anything that kept her mind off Percy. It was then did she realize that Ron was still outside alone. He'd been out there since they had gotten back.

Walking over to the front door, Ginny opened it and walked out of the house as a short breeze went through her hair. She then spotted her brother sitting on the ground, under the tree that was right by the house.

"Ron." She said quietly as she walked over and sat down next to him.

He didn't respond. He probably didn't even want to hear her.

"Ron." She said again.

"Go away Ginny." Ron finally said.

"No."

Ron squeezed his eyes shut and struggled to control his temper. Finally he looked over at her with an expression that was mixed with sadness and anger.

"Ginny..._bugger off_."

But she knew Ron well enough to know that he needed someone right now. The two of them had always been close because of how much older Bill and Charlie were, how Percy always buried himself in his work and because the twins were insepratable.

But Ginny knew that Ron looked up to Percy to a certain extent. He took Percy's estrangement from the family hard, as they all had. He had been devastated by the news of Percy becoming a Death Eater, as they all had. And now he had to deal with his death, as they all had too. They was no moment of reconciliation, no forgiveness, nothing.

She too was angry at Percy, and knew that she didn't appreciate him enough when he was around, and now he was dead and she would never have that chance.

"No."

Pushing himself up to his feet, Ron breathed angerily as he tried to walk back to the house but Ginny quickly grabbed his wrist.

"Ron...listen to me."

He stopped and took a deep breath as she continued.

"I know you're upset about Percy-"

Ron gave a jagged laugh and ripped his hand way.

"You don't know the half of it," he whispered. "You _don't_, so don't dare pretend you do! Selfish git, why did he have to go and _die_ like that?"

Then Ron uttered one great, crackling sob, and with that the dam broke. Ginny threw her arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder as well.

Together they stood there in a tight embrace, mourning their brother together.


	14. Never Forgotten

XXXXXXX

The day of Percy's funeral was a sorrowful one indeed. No one at the funeral was spared sobs or tears. Everyone that had gathered was crying for some reason or another. Some were crying over a lost son, a lost brother, a lost friend, a lost ex-boyfriend, a lost employee. The funeral went by in a haze.

Percy's ex-girlfriend Penelope Clearwater was in attendance along with her family, tears silently trickling down her cheeks. Remus Lupin was there, Nymphadora Tonks standing right next to him, holding his hand. Rufus Scrimgeour stood near the back of the crowd along with other minister employees.

Ron and Ginny were both in another world, Harry and Hermione did their best to comfort them. Each twin looked lost, the normal carefree smile they usually had was gone. Charlie stood with his hands shoved in his pockets, bottom lip trembling.

Molly and Arthur stood next to each other, Arthur having his arm over his wife's shoulder as she sobbed quietly. Percy's coffin lay near the open hole in the grass, ready to be lowered.

However, Bill stood alone. He took a brief glance at Fleur who was standing with her parents. He then took a deep breath and stepped forward to give his speech. While his throat ached, he was determined to get through this.

"We are all here today to say goodbye, to mark the passing of my brother from this world." Bill began." Since I was the oldest, it was my job to watch over him, to be a good role model. When he was young he would always follow me and Charlie around, always trying to do everything we did."

Bill then paused to look over at Charlie who nodded as if he remembered clearly.

"I remember being proud of Percy when he did well in school and became a Prefect and then Head Boy. I felt like I had done my job well as older brother as he had accomplished what I had did. Perhaps I felt that I did my job well enough that I no longer needed to look out for him. After all, he was no longer a child, he had his own younger siblings to look after so I stopped taking an active interest in his pursuits, and after some time away from home, we began to grow apart."

He then stopped to clear his throat and paused for a few seconds. Bill knew that the next part of this wasn't going to be easy, for him or anyone else in the family.

"Then…the day came where Percy made his choice to leave our family. Angry words were said on both sides, and each side believed their judgment to be the best. I guess stubbornness has always run in the family, because neither side would speak to the other until the other reached out first. Still, I never thought it would have come down to what it did. I can't imagine the kind of lies and poison that was fed into his mind once he left the shelter of his home."

Tears finally began to well up in Bill's eyes as he decided to finish.

"I just want Percy to know that I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't there when you needed me. Goodbye, little bro. I love you."

Bill took a deep breath as tears began to slide down his cheeks. Fleur came up beside him and gently took his hand. He gave her a sad smile as Arthur slowly detached himself from his wife and came forward to give his own speech.

"Percy was the third child my wife Molly and I had. I could tell from the very beginning that he was different from the rest of his siblings. You see, we never had a speck of trouble from Percy, not a bit. He always did what was asked of him, by us, by his teachers, by his superiors."

Arthur then closed his eyes for a moment before taking a deep breath and continuing.

"So you can imagine my surprise the night he came home and we got into a bit of a fight. I yelled at him, he yelled back at me. He said such hateful things and all I could think was how could I not have seen this? How could I have not seen that my boy had such anger inside him and I never knew? I can't deny that I didn't understand Percy the way I did my other children, and with the twins coming right after him he my not have gotten the attention he needed from us. He was estranged from us practically since the time he finished his education."

He then bowed his head, regret obvious in his expression as Fred and George both took a quick look at their dad.

"I know we're all sadden, confused, and little angry at some of the decisions Percy chose." Arthur continued. "But even in all that, I stand here still proud to call him my son. Because in his last moments, he showed who he truly was. He saved the life of his older brother, giving his own in the process. Even though he is gone, I take comfort in knowing that my son couldn't be turned into something that he wasn't."

Bill nodded to himself as his father finished his speech.

"We know that war is upon us all, we have suffered losses because of it, and are bound to suffer more before the end. But for today, I stand here to say goodbye to my son, to tell him that I'm proud of him…and that I still love him and will always love him."

Swallowing a knot in his throat, Arthur took a step back towards Molly and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

Then, everyone slowly walked by the coffin, each one dropping a flower next to it. The twins lingered by the coffin, staring at it, longer than anyone else.

After dropping their flowers, Ron and Ginny both gave each other a sad smile. The coffin was then lowered into the ground.

And with that, Percy Weasley was buried.

XXXXXX

Five Years Later

The war was finally over. It was long, painful, and as Arthur had predicted more losses were suffered on their side. Dumbledore was gone, Lupin was gone, Tonks was gone.

But, in a selfish way Bill was happy that his family didn't suffer any more. Losing Percy was hard enough, he didn't want to have to go through all that again.

He had visited Percy's grave before coming up to the Burrow with his wife Fleur in tow, coming to visit his parents to give them the happy news.

Because of the war, he had to put all his plans on hold. But now that it had been over for about a year now and old wounds had began to heal it was appropriate time for Bill and Fleur to try to do something they've been wanting to ever since they got married.

The two of them walked hand in hand through the front door of the Burrow.

"Hello? Is anyone home?" Bill called out.

"In the kitchen, dear."

He walked in to see his mother standing by the stove cooking. Molly turned her head and smiled when she saw him.

"Bill." She said as she walked over to give him a hug. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Yeah, I've some big news. Is dad around?"

"I'll get him."

After Molly went up the stairs to get her husband, they all gathered in the living room.

"What do you need to tell us?" Arthur asked.

Bill then smiled up at his wife before turning back to his parents.

"Fleur's pregnant."

Molly then shouted out in joy as she jumped up to give her daughter in law a hug. A big smile appeared on Arthur's face as he shook his sons hand before giving him a hug as well. Bill smiled at his parent's jubilation at becoming grandparents before deciding to let them in on another plan of his.

"There's also something else."

"What?" Arthur asked.

"If it's a boy…we're going to name him Percy."

Arthur then took a quick glance at his wife as she quieted down. Percy was still a tough subject for the both of them. Molly then spoke up.

"Well, with the track record of boys in this family, I don't think it's going to be a matter of if."

They all began talking and laughing after that, Molly asking them to stay for dinner. After his parents got up to get the food prepared, Bill walked over to the window and looked up towards the sky.

_'I made it.'_

The End.


End file.
